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John Cipollina (August 24, 1943 – May 29, 1989) was a
guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...
best known for his role as a founder and the lead guitarist of the prominent
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
rock band
Quicksilver Messenger Service Quicksilver Messenger Service is an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1965 in San Francisco. The band achieved wide popularity in the San Francisco Bay Area and, through their recordings, with psychedelic rock enthusiasts around the globe, ...
. After leaving Quicksilver he formed the band
Copperhead Copperhead may refer to: Snakes * ''Agkistrodon contortrix'', or copperhead, a venomous pit viper species found in parts of North America * '' Austrelaps'', or Australian copperhead, a genus of venomous elapids found in southern Australia and Ta ...
, was a member of the San Francisco All Stars and later played with numerous other bands.


Early years

John and his twin sister Manuela were born in
Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...
, on August 24, 1943. Cipollina attended
Tamalpais High School Tamalpais High School (often abbreviated as Tam) is a public secondary school located in Mill Valley, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is named after nearby Mount Tamalpais, which rises almost above Mill Valley. Tamalpais High Scho ...
, in Mill Valley, California, as did his brother,
Mario is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his cre ...
(born 1954), and sister, Antonia (born 1952). Their father, Gino, was of Italian ancestry (Genovese and Piemontese origins). He was a realtor, and their mother, Evelyn, and godfather,
José Iturbi José Iturbi Báguena (28 November 189528 June 1980) was a Spanish conductor, pianist and harpsichordist. He appeared in several Hollywood films of the 1940s, notably playing himself in the musicals ''Thousands Cheer'' (1943), ''Music for Mill ...
, were concert pianists. John showed great promise as a classical
pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
in his youth, but his father gave him a
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
when he was 12 and this quickly became his primary instrument.


Equipment and technique

Cipollina had a unique guitar sound, mixing solid state and
valve A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically fittings ...
amplifiers as early as 1965. He is considered one of the fathers of the San Francisco sound, a form of
psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
.
I like the rapid punch of solid-state for the bottom, and the rodent-gnawing distortion of the tubes on top.
To create his distinctive guitar sound, Cipollina developed a one-of-a-kind amplifier stack. His
Gibson SG The Gibson SG is a solid-body electric guitar model introduced by Gibson in 1961 as the Gibson Les Paul SG. It remains in production today in many variations of the initial design. The SG (where "SG" refers to Solid-Body Guitar) Standard is Gi ...
guitars had two pickups, one for bass and one for treble. The bass pickup fed into two Standel bass amps on the bottom of the stack, each equipped with two 15-inch speakers. The treble pickups fed two Fender amps: a
Fender Twin Reverb The Fender Twin and Twin Reverb are guitar amplifiers made by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. The Twin was introduced in 1952, two years before Fender began selling Stratocaster electric guitars. The amps are known for their characterist ...
and a Fender Dual Showman that drove six Wurlitzer horns.


Copperhead and Career after Quicksilver Messenger Service

After leaving Quicksilver in 1971, Cipollina formed the band Copperhead with early Quicksilver member Jim Murray (who was soon to leave for
Maui, Hawaii The island of Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th largest island in the United S ...
), former
Stained Glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...
member Jim McPherson, drummer David Weber, Gary Phillipet (AKA
Gary Phillips (keyboardist) Gary Phillips (born Gary Edmund Philippet; February 5, 1947 – January 17, 2007) was an American musician who played keyboard with The Greg Kihn Band. He joined them in 1981, just before their US #15 hit "The Breakup Song". In 1983, they had a # ...
, later a member of Bay Area bands Earthquake and
The Greg Kihn Band The Greg Kihn Band is an American band that was started by frontman Greg Kihn and bassist Steve Wright. Their most successful singles include " The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)" ( ''Billboard'' Hot 100 #15) and " Jeopardy" (''Billboard'' ...
), and
Pete Sears Peter Roy Sears (born 27 May 1948) is an English rock musician. In a career spanning more than six decades, he has been a member of many bands and has moved through a variety of musical genres, from early R&B, psychedelic improvisational rock o ...
. Sears was shortly thereafter replaced by current and longtime
Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American blues singer and guitarist. In 1971, Raitt released her self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed roots-influenced albums that incorporated ...
bassist
James "Hutch" Hutchinson James Hutchinson (born January 24, 1953) is an American session bassist best known for his work with Bonnie Raitt. Though his work takes him nearly everywhere he primarily resides in Studio City, Los Angeles, CA and Haiku-Pauwela, Hawaii. Ca ...
who played on the Copperhead LP and stayed with the band for its duration. Copperhead disbanded in mid 1974 after becoming a staple in the SF Bay Area and touring the West Coast, Hawaii (Sunshine Crater Fest on New Years Day of 1973 with Santana), the South (opening dates for Steely Dan) and the Midwest. In May 1974 Cipollina and Link Wray, whose playing and style had influenced John as a young musician and who he had met through bassist Hutch Hutchinson, performed a series of shows together along the West Coast (with Copperhead rhythm section Hutchinson & Weber and keyboardist David Bloom) culminating at The Whiskey in LA where they performed for four nights (May 15–19) on a bill with
Lighthouse (band) Lighthouse is a Canadian rock band formed in 1968 in Toronto, Ontario, whose repertoire included elements of rock music, jazz, classical music, and swing and featured horns, string instruments, and vibraphone. They won Juno Awards for Best C ...
. Cipollina continued to occasionally perform with Wray for the next couple of years. During the 1980s, Cipollina performed with a number of bands, including Fish & Chips, Thunder and Lightning, the Dinosaurs and Problem Child. He was a founding member of Zero and its rhythm guitarist until his death. Most often these bands played club gigs in the San Francisco Bay Area, where Cipollina was well-known.


Experience with Man

In 1975, the Welsh psychedelic band
Man A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromo ...
toured the United States, towards the end of which, they played two gigs at the San Francisco Winterland (March 21 and 22), which were such a success that promoter Bill Graham paid them a bonus and rebooked them. While waiting for the additional gigs, the band met and rehearsed with Cipollina, who played with them at Winterland in April 1975. After this, Cipollina agreed to play a UK tour which took place in May 1975, during which their "Roundhouse gig" was recorded. Rumors that Micky Jones had to overdub Cipollina's parts, as his guitar was out of tune, before their ''
Maximum Darkness ''Maximum Darkness'' is the tenth album by the Welsh rock band Man and was released on the United Artists Records label September 1975. It was the second live album released by the band, excluding contributions to two "various artists" live alb ...
'' album could be released are exaggerated; only one track, "Bananas", was to have his track replaced, per Deke Leonard. "Everything ... which sounds like Cipollina is Cipollina." The album eventually reached #25 in the UK album charts.


Death and legacy

Cipollina died on May 29, 1989 at age 45. His cause of death was
alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (A1AD or AATD) is a genetic disorder that may result in lung disease or liver disease. Onset of lung problems is typically between 20 and 50 years of age. This may result in shortness of breath, wheezing, or an inc ...
, which he suffered from most of his life and which is exacerbated by smoking. Quicksilver Messenger Service fans paid tribute to him the following month in San Francisco at an all-star concert at the Fillmore Auditorium which featured
Nicky Hopkins Nicholas Christian "Nicky" Hopkins (24 February 1944 – 6 September 1994) was an English pianist and organist. Hopkins performed on many popular and enduring British and American rock music recordings from the 1960s to the 1990s, most notably ...
, Pete Sears,
David Freiberg David Freiberg ( ; born August 24, 1938) is an American musician best known for contributing vocals, keyboards, electric bass, rhythm guitar, viola and percussion as a member of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane, and Jefferson ...
, and John's brother
Mario is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his cre ...
, an original member of Huey Lewis and the News. Cipollina's one of a kind massive amplifier stack was donated, along with one of his customized Gibson SG guitars, and effects pedals, for display in the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...
and Museum in 1995. In 2003, ''
Rolling Stone Magazine ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its cove ...
'' ranked Cipollina 32nd on their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time.


Discography


Quicksilver Messenger Service

* 1968: ''
Quicksilver Messenger Service Quicksilver Messenger Service is an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1965 in San Francisco. The band achieved wide popularity in the San Francisco Bay Area and, through their recordings, with psychedelic rock enthusiasts around the globe, ...
'' * 1969: '' Happy Trails'' * 1969: '' Shady Grove'' * 1970: ''
Just for Love ''Just for Love'' is the fourth album by American psychedelic rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service. Released in August 1970, it marks the culmination of a transition from the extended, blues- and jazz-inspired improvisations of their first tw ...
'' * 1970: '' What About Me'' * 1975: ''
Solid Silver ''Solid Silver'' is the eighth album by American psychedelic rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service and their mid-1970s comeback album, reuniting the band's entire core lineup. Though the album charted slightly higher than their previous two rel ...
''


with Brewer and Shipley

* 1971: ''Shake off the Demon'' (Kama Sutra)


with

Papa John Creach John Henry Creach (May 28, 1917 – February 22, 1994), better known as Papa John Creach, was an American blues violinist who also played classical, jazz, R&B, pop and acid rock music. Early in his career, he performed as a journeyman musician wi ...

* 1971: ''Papa John Creach'' (Grunt Records)


with

Mickey Hart Mickey Hart (born Michael Steven Hartman, September 11, 1943) is an American percussionist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 until February 19 ...

* 1972: '' Rolling Thunder''


Copperhead

* 1973: ''Copperhead'' (Columbia)


with Man

* 1975: ''
Maximum Darkness ''Maximum Darkness'' is the tenth album by the Welsh rock band Man and was released on the United Artists Records label September 1975. It was the second live album released by the band, excluding contributions to two "various artists" live alb ...
'' Maximum Darkness LP (1975) United Artists: CD (1991) BGO CD 43: CD Re-mix (2008) Esoteric ECLEC 2061 Micky Jones,
Deke Leonard Roger Arnold "Deke" Leonard (18 December 1944 – 31 January 2017) was a Welsh rock musician, "serving a life sentence in the music business".Terry Williams, John Cipollina Recorded at
The Roundhouse The Roundhouse is a performing arts and concert venue situated at the Grade II* listed former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, England. The building was erected in 1846–1847 by the London & North Western Railway as a roundhouse, ...
,
Chalk Farm Chalk Farm is a small urban district of north London, lying immediately north of Camden Town, in the London Borough of Camden. History Manor of Rugmere Chalk Farm was originally known as the Manor of Rugmere, an estate that was mentioned in ...
, 26 May 1975


Freelight

* 1977: unreleased demos


Terry and the Pirates

* 1979 ''
Too Close For Comfort ''Too Close for Comfort'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on ABC from November 11, 1980, to May 5, 1983, and in first-run syndication from April 7, 1984, to February 7, 1987. Its name was changed to ''The Ted Knight Show'' w ...
'' (Wild Bunch) * 1980 '' Doubtful Handshake'' (Line Records) * 1981 ''Wind Dancer'' (Rag Baby, Line Records) * 1982 ''Rising of the Moon'' (Rag Baby, Line Records) * 1987 '' Acoustic Rangers'' (Sawdust Records) * 1990 ''Silverado Trail'' (Big Beat Records)


Solo album

* 1980: '' John Cipollina's Raven'' (Line Records) re-released in 2006 as ''Raven'' (Acadia) with 7 additional tracks Re-release Tracklist 1. Rock & Roll Nurse 2. True Golden Touch 3. Do What You Do 4. Unvicious Circle 5. True Reward 6. Grass Is Always Greener 7. Clouds 8. All Worth The price 9. Ride (Highway Song) 10. Burning Corte Madera 11. The Truth 12. Bad News 13. Razor Blade4 & Rattlesnake 14. Prayers


with Nick Gravenites

* 1980: '' Blue Star'' (Line Records)


The Nick Gravenites - John Cipollina Band

* 1982: '' Monkey Medicine'' (Line Records) * 1991: '' Live At Rodon'' "Nick Gravenites and John Cipollina"; recorded 12/31/1987; (Music Box)See th
album webpage
at
Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...
.


The Dinosaurs

* 1988: ''Dinosaurs''


with Merrell Fankhauser

* 1986: ''Dr. Fankhauser''


Zero

* 1987: ''Here Goes Nothin'' (Relix Records) * 1990: ''Nothin Goes Here]'' (Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab) * 1991: ''Go Hear Nothin (Live)'' (Whirled Records)


Videos

* Dino's Song * *


References


External links


JohnCipollina.com
- Memorial website
John Cipollina MySpace


- 'John Cipollina: The Life And Death Of San Francisco's Most Prolific Guitarist', William Ruhlmann *
allmusic.com AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
- All-Music Guide Entry
John Cipollina collection
at the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
's live music archive *
John Cipollina Electric GuitarSlinger - Movie Trailer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cipollina, John 1943 births 1989 deaths American rock guitarists American male guitarists Deaths from emphysema People from Mill Valley, California Musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area Quicksilver Messenger Service members Art rock musicians Tamalpais High School alumni Lead guitarists 20th-century American guitarists Man (band) members Copperhead (band) members Guitarists from California 20th-century American male musicians The Dinosaurs members